LAST WEEK
SHARE prices closed marginally higher last week as trading volatility was observed throughout the week, with the movements tracking global events such as the Greece debt crisis.
The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) index gained 20.88 points to close at 7,622.05 points, while all other subindices closed higher.
During the week, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas kept its rates steady but most investors focused on the development in Greece on whether its government will reach a deal with its creditors. Offshore volatility led to net foreign selling in four out of five trading days this week with a small amount of net foreign buying observed at the end of the week.
Foreign investors were net sellers at P2.18 billion.
Other subindices closed higher, but the movement were also marginal. The All Shares index closed higher by 7.27 to 4,358.66; the Industrial index grew 47.21 to 11,664.46; the Holding Firms index rose 18.49 to 6,842.96; the Holding Firms index gained 3.37 to 3,053.28; the Mining and Oil index increased 44.98 to 13,822.89; the Financials index dropped 5.66 to 1,735.57 and the Services index fell 1.40 to 2,089.89.
Top gainers for the week were Pryce Corp., Yehey! Corp., Keppel Philippines Holdings Inc. A, Minerales Industrias Corp. and AG Finance Inc. Top losers, meanwhile, were First Abacus Financial Holdings Corp., Grand Plaza Hotel Corp., Melco Crown (Philippines) Resorts Corp., Makati Finance Corp., Vivant Corp. and Cebu Property Venture and Development Corp. A.
Losers edged out gainers 118 to 91 and 27 were unchanged.
THIS WEEK
BANK of the Philippine Islands said volatility of trading in the PSE may continue this week, though less erratic compared to the previous week.
It said that the main index may trade between 7,500 and 7,700 points with downward bias.
“Given the delay in any resolution of the talks in Greece, we expect this to be the main driver of movements in the local equity market in the upcoming week,” the lender said.
Luis Limlingan, managing director at Regina Capital Development Corp. said that the key resistance level of the PSEi is placed at 7,714 points, which, if broken, will trigger an upward reversal. “A cautious position is raised for this week, due to the expectation that that index will hold above its 200-day moving average. With volatility levels decreasing, expect less erratic intraday movements to give more stability to price movements,” Limlingan said.
STOCK PICKS
REGINA Capital recommend to buy Aboitiz Power Corp. as prices are expected to start forming an uptrend since breaking its three-month consolidation resistance.
“Prices are now looking to test intraday resistance at 45.00 which, if broken, will lead further advances toward year-to-date resistance of P47,” the broker said.
Aboitiz Power closed last week at P44.80.
Meanwhile, the broker also placed a sell recommendation on LT Group Inc. as it anticipated a potential reversal of its current uptrend. “Technical indicators still show a bearish bias despite recent recovery, making it hard for prices to sustain advances,” the broker said.
Immediate support is placed at P13.74 but pullbacks to P13.30 monthly support is a possibility and could extend to P12.90 based on trend trajectory, the broker said.
LT Group closed last Friday at P13.50 per share. VG Cabuag